Nursing Pinning and Recognition Ceremony celebrates ‘a truly special group of students.’
COLUMBIA, KY. (05/02/2025) Less than 48 hours before they will receive their Lindsey Wilson College diploma, a dozen members of the Class of 2025 were symbolically welcomed into the nursing profession on Thursday night, as well as recognized for their accomplishments and achievements while studying for the profession.
The Lindsey Wilson Program of Nursing Pinning and Recognition Ceremony included a long-standing tradition held all over the world in which nursing students on the cusp of receiving their degree are presented a pin, a ritual initiated in the 19th century by nursing pioneer Florence Nightingale.
“This is a truly special group of students,” Lindsey Wilson Director of Nursing Dr. Emiley Button told the audience gathered in V.P. Henry Auditorium. “I can personally attest to their exceptional character and camaraderie. They are a bright, cohesive cohort who have set a high standard.”
After Saturday morning’s commencement ceremony, Lindsey Wilson Class of 2025 nurses will have one more challenge — sitting for the National Council Licensure Examination. Also known as the NCLEX, it is the national standardized examination for nursing licensure in the United States.
Separate from a college’s commencement ceremony, a pinning ceremony is a “more personal event that signifies the end of the years of toiling in nursing school and getting ready to tackle the NCLEX,” said Button.
‘A passion for this career’
Button said this year’s seniors have exhibited the qualities essential to being an effective nurse.
“Most nurses work long hours in challenging conditions, and the work can be emotionally draining,” said Button “In order to be a nurse, one must have tough skin and a heart filled with love for nursing.”
In his remarks to the nursing seniors, Lindsey Wilson Vice President for Academic Affairs Ray Lutgring reminded them that the profession of nursing is as much an art as it is a science.
“I know you’ve learned all of the science of nursing at Lindsey Wilson,” said Lutgring. “But I also hope you’ve learned the art. Your humanity and your empathy will be just as important.”
And senior Haley Cook of Russell Springs, Kentucky, said that is what she and her classmates have learned during their four years at Lindsey Wilson studying for a bachelor of science degree in nursing.
“We have not only learned the science of nursing, we have learned the importance of caring, of comforting and of healing,” said Cook, who received the Elizabeth Lowe Whitfield Nursing Professional Development Award, which is presented by the nursing faculty to a senior who embodies the qualities and characteristics of a professional nurse. “We have faced challenges with courage and determination, and we have demonstrated resilience in ways that would shape us into the professionals we have become today.”
Cook said that she and her classmates chose to enter the nursing profession because “we truly have a passion for this career” and have “a calling to serve, a desire to care and a commitment to be there for people when they need it the most.”
“This dream we have shared to help others, impact lives and live out our calling is finally becoming a reality,” said Cook.
Lindsey Wilson’s 121st commencement ceremony will be held in three parts: at 6 p.m. CT Friday, May 2, and at 10 a.m. and at 2 p.m. CT Saturday, May 3, all at Biggers Sports Center. It will be the final Lindsey Wilson College commencement as the school will become Lindsey Wilson University on July 1.
The Lindsey Wilson nursing seniors who received their pins during ceremony were: Bailey Baker of Science Hill, Kentucky; Anna Burton of Columbia; Haley Cook of Russell Springs, Kentucky; Emilee Flatt of Columbia; Jaidyn Franklin of Glasgow, Kentucky; Savannah Gray of Jamestown, Kentucky; Ryan Higgott of Shelbyville, Kentucky; Hannah Holt of Russell Springs; Angel Marcum of Russell Springs; Payton Polston of Columbia; Destiny Whitaker of Somerset, Kentucky; and Jenna Wood of Somerset.
The Lindsey Wilson nursing awards presented during ceremony were:
Assessment Technologies Institute Highest Average Score: Haley Cook of Russell Springs, Kentucky;
Assessment Technologies Institute Highest Exam Score: Bailey Baker of Science Hill, Kentucky;
Elizabeth Lowe Whitfield Nursing Professional Development Award: Haley Cook of Russell Springs, Kentucky;
Lab Ambassador Award: Jaidyn Franklin of Glasgow, Kentucky;
Nursing Competency Recognition: Bailey Baker of Science Hill, Kentucky;
Nursing Compassion Recognition: Destiny Whitaker of Somerset, Kentucky;
Nursing Caring Recognition: Savannah Gray of Jamestown, Kentucky;
Outstanding Senior Nursing Academic Excellence Award: Bailey Baker of Science Hill, Kentucky;
Spirit of Nursing Award: Jenna Wood of Somerset, Kentucky;
TJ Samson TJ Pledge Award 6 C’s: Emilee Flatt of Columbia.
The nursing seniors of the Lindsey Wilson College Class of 2025 received their pins at the Nursing Pinning and Recognition Ceremony, held Thursday, May 1, at V.P. Henry Auditorium. Front row, from left: Destiny Whitaker of Somerset, Kentucky; Jaidyn Franklin of Glasgow, Kentucky; Payton Polston of Columbia; Ryan Higgott of Shelbyville, Kentucky; Bailey Baker of Science Hill, Kentucky; and Anna Burton of Columbia. Back row, from left: Jenna Wood of Somerset, Kentucky; Angel Marcum of Russell Springs, Kentucky; Savannah Gray of Jamestown, Kentucky; Haley Cook of Russell Springs, Kentucky; Emilee Flatt of Columbia; and Hannah Holt of Russell Springs, Kentucky.
Lindsey Wilson College nursing senior Haley Cook of Russell Springs, Kentucky, who received the Elizabeth Lowe Whitfield Nursing Professional Development Award, speaks at the Program of Nursing Pinning and Recognition Ceremony, held Thursday, May 1, in V.P. Henry Auditorium. The award — which is presented by the nursing faculty to a senior who embodies the qualities and characteristics of a professional nurse — is named in honor of the late Elizabeth Lowe Whitfield, an Adair County native and Lindsey Wilson trustee who was a supporter of the program.
Lindsey Wilson College Director of Nursing Dr. Emiley Button presents the Elizabeth Lowe Whitfield Nursing Professional Development Award to nursing senior Haley Cook of Russell Springs, Kentucky, at the Program of Nursing Pinning and Recognition Ceremony, held Thursday, May 1, in V.P. Henry Auditorium. The award — which is presented by the nursing faculty to a senior who embodies the qualities and characteristics of a professional nurse — is named in honor of the late Elizabeth Lowe Whitfield, an Adair County native and Lindsey Wilson trustee who was a supporter of the program.
The Rev. Carol Weddle, pastor of Antioch Church in Columbia, blesses the hands of Lindsey Wilson College nursing senior Jaidyn Franklin of Glasgow, Kentucky, during the Program of Nursing Pinning and Recognition Ceremony, held Thursday, May 1, in V.P. Henry Auditorium.
Lindsey Wilson College Vice President for Academic Affairs Ray Lutgring speaks at the Program of Nursing Pinning and Recognition Ceremony, held Thursday, May 1, in V.P. Henry Auditorium. “I know you’ve learned all of the science of nursing at Lindsey Wilson,” Lutgring told the nursing seniors. “But I also hope you’ve learned the art. Your humanity and your empathy will be just as important.”
Lindsey Wilson College is a vibrant liberal arts college in Columbia, Kentucky. Founded in 1903 and affiliated with The United Methodist Church, the mission of Lindsey Wilson is to serve the educational needs of students by providing a living-learning environment within an atmosphere of active caring and Christian concern where every student, every day, learns and grows and feels like a real human being. Lindsey Wilson — which will become Lindsey Wilson University on July 1 — has an enrollment of more than 4,000 students, and the college offers 28 undergraduate majors, five graduate programs and a doctoral program. The college’s 28 intercollegiate varsity athletic teams have won more than 120 team and individual national championships.
(Duane Bonifer – Lindsey Wilson College)